Paninis and baguettes on school dinner menu

Published on Tuesday 29 June 2010 17:12

EDUCATION leaders must take an "innovative" approach in order to increase the number of pupils choosing school meals, the children's minister said yesterday.

Adam Ingram has written to schools throughout the country, education directors and catering firms, after new figures revealed only a marginal increase in those children taking meals. He has urged authorities to overhaul the way they provide sustenance for pupils and consider laying on the likes of hot paninis and "deli-style" baguettes.

However, campaigners said the only way significantly to improve the uptake would be to provide free meals to all children.

Information released yesterday by Scotland's chief statistician shows fewer than half of all pupils are eating school dinners.

The overall rate of pupils who took a meal, paid for or free, increased from 45.1 per cent last year to 46.1 per cent, while the proportion of eligible children who took a free meal fell from 82.2 per cent to 81.5 per cent in the past two years. The drop was recorded despite an extra 17,010 children registered for free meals in the same period. In all, some 118,963 pupils across the nation are now registered for free meals.

In secondary schools, overall uptake remained steady at about 39 per cent, but has been falling gradually from 2003's high of 51.2 per cent.

Just over half of primary school pupils present at the time of the survey took meals, the highest rate recorded in ten years.

The slight increase in meal uptake is due, in part, to some local authorities offering free school meals regardless of family income.

Mr Ingram welcomed the improvements but conceded more needed to be done.

He said: "I am encouraged by the improvements. Areas such as Perth and Kinross, Dundee and Clackmannanshire have done particularly well, but I want other local authorities to learn from their achievements.

"That's why I'm writing to everyone involved in school meal provision to highlight innovative practices to support healthy eating, such as grab-and-go pre-ordering services and high-street alternatives, like hot paninis and deli-style personalised baguettes."

Labour education spokesman Des McNulty said the figures highlighted a "lack of progress".

John Dickie, head of the Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland and a leading member of the Scottish Free School Meals Campaign, said: "The cost of school lunches remains a real barrier for too many families, despite a welcome extension free school meal entitlement."